The stuff of manhood

….starts with the stuff of boyhood. The article in the post down below on Father’s Day makes a reference to “The Dangerous Book for Boys”, which I just found and snapped up this week in the local bookstore, after writing that post.

I opened the book, and right inside the jacket cover, there’s this great quote:

“Don’t worry about genius and don’t worry about not being clever. Trust rather to hard work, perseverance, and determination. The best motto for a long march is ‘Don’t grumble. Plug on.’

“You hold your future in your own hands. Never waver in this belief. Don’t swagger. The boy who swaggers–like the man who swaggers–has little else that he can do. He is a cheap-Jack crying his own paltry wares. It is the empty tin that rattles most. Be honest. Be loyal. Be kind. Remember that the hardest thing to acquire is the faculty of being unselfish. As a quality it is one of the finest attributes of manliness.

“Love the sea, the ringing beach and the open downs.

“Keep clean, body and mind.”

Where else are you being so ennobled in the current media culture?